Vegan Eating 101: Iron, man

By Denis Faye • August 15th, 2011 • 5194 Views

Going vegan is indeed a noble pursuit. Environmental benefits aside, it’s an important part of the yogic practice of ahimsa, or nonviolence. That said, from a physiological standpoint, human beings are omnivorous, which means we’re equipped to consume – and benefit from - animal products. There are several nutrients that meat eaters get in abundance that vegans and vegetarians need to be more mindful of.  With this in mind, I’d like to spend some time looking at these nutrients and how to work them into your cruelty-free diet. Today, let’s talk about iron.

Iron is a mineral that’s an important component of two proteins, hemoglobin and myoglobin. Hemoglobin, found in red blood cells, carries oxygen to your body’s tissues. The lesser-known myoglobin also helps provide oxygen to muscles.

The adult body tends to hold onto iron, so we don’t need much of it. The RDA is 18 mg. The exception to this is menstruation. Since the bulk of your iron is stored in red blood cells, women with heavy periods experience significant iron loss, about 30-45mg a month, so they typically want to eat a little more iron during these times.

There are two kinds of dietary iron: heme and nonheme. The body absorbs heme, which comes from meat, better than nonheme, which comes from vegetable sources. Fortunately, there’s an easy trick to increasing nonheme iron absorbency: consume it with vitamin C. Conversely, try to avoid tea with your iron sources because the tannins can inhibit absorption.

And a quick note to all you ovo-lacto vegetarians out there: the heme iron comes from blood and muscle, so eggs and dairy only contain nonheme iron, so these tips apply to you too!

Armed with all this information, you’re probably asking, “What are these vegan iron sources you’re recommending?” Primarily, I’d say beans and lentils – black beans, chickpeas, pinto beans, kidney beans, you name it. Soybeans are particularly high in iron, but they also contain amino acids that inhibit its absorption. However, if you ferment the beans, the bioavailability goes up, so if you’re feeling soyish, look to tempeh, miso, and natto.

Kale and mushrooms can also be good sources of iron, as can whole-wheat flour, oats, rye flour, and everyone’s favorite faux-grain, quinoa. Although people often associate spinach with iron, it’s actually not a great choice because it contains oxalic acid, which limits iron absorption.

Of course, iron-fortified foods like breakfast cereals will trump all these other...

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Location:  Los Angeles, US

Starting out as weight challenged, Denis Faye dropped 50 pounds following a 5-year jaunt through Australia, a trip that helped him become the extreme fitness and sports enthusiast he is today. He includes...